IT was a year that promised a lot for Ngezi Platinum Stars at the beginning of the season, but in the end they had to settle for second place in the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title race.
By Munyaradzi Madzokere
Yet things seem to be coming together for utility player Godknows Murwira, who returned to the Soccer Stars calendar since his move from Dynamos to Ngezi Platinum.
Murwira was also voted the best player at the Mhondoro-Ngezi-based side to cap his season with two notable achievements at a personal level. However, the 25-year-old star, who can play in virtually every in-field position, would have preferred winning the league championship to the individual accolades.
It remains a wonder to him how Ngezi Platinum Stars failed to land the championship considering they were unbeaten in the first 14 matches of the league race.
“It’s a big disappointment that we failed to win the league title. If you look at the kind of pace we set in the first half of the season, it’s inexplicable how we failed to win the championship. But the biggest lesson for all of us is that fighting for the championship is not easy,” Murwira told Standardsport in an interview.
“I still think we have what it takes to win the league title next season although I know it will be more difficult to even finish second.
“What it means is that we have to work harder because other teams now see us as a threat and will be eager to beat us,” he added.
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Murwira was a forward when he became a professional footballer with Monomotapa in 2012.
It was at Monomotapa that he was converted into a defensive player and ever since, playing for teams like Shabanie Mine, Dynamos and Ngezi, he has been a fullback, defensive linkman, winger and striker.
In 2016, Murwira was among the 11 best players in the local league after shining in a season where Dynamos struggled to put up a challenge.
This year, along with teammate Michael Charamba, he made it onto the calendar before he picked another gong as Ngezi’s best player in the just ended season.
“I can say this is my best season in terms of individual achievements and it’s a big lesson to me that hard work pays and one needs to be focused to achieve goals. But if I have to honest, I am not satisfied with what I have achieved, I would have wanted more. I can say I am thankful for these two awards so that I don’t appear ungrateful to God,” he said.
Since leaving Dynamos at the end of the 2016 season, Murwira has grown to become one of the key players at Ngezi and this season he added a feather to his cap when he was appointed vice-captain of the team after Liberty Chakoroma left.
